Château
Pichon Baron

Vintage conditions

Winter rain helped to replenish the water table satisfactorily. Consistent bud break took place in the second half of April. Flowering started at the end of May. Thanks to stable weather conditions with very constant temperatures, fruit set accelerated in mid-June. Summer started with warm and sometimes scorchingly hot dry weather. Summer pruning began with leaf and shoot thinning in June and July in order to make the most of this favourable microclimate. The first significant water stress then helped the skins to thicken and led to early ripening of the grapes. In these ideal conditions, targeted thinning was carried out early in order to encourage the assimilation of compounds essential to ensuring perfect ripening.During the last days of July, still dry and hot, the first grapes started to change colour. Stormy periods in August and September boosted ripening. The skins grew finer and flavours became more expressive. On the whole, maturity was very consistent. Thanks to firm, strong skins, phenolic maturity progressed without risk of over-ripening.The harvest took place under optimum weather conditions. The Merlot was harvested from 18 to 25 September and the Cabernet-Sauvignon from 1 to 9 October.Perfect soundness combined with a careful selection policy ensured precise vatting of meticulously sorted grapes.